


Strike Hard

by horusporus



Series: Rate Your Dojo [2]
Category: Cobra Kai (Web Series), Karate Kid (Movies)
Genre: Boys In Love, Class Issues, Light Angst, M/M, Romance, Teen Romance, do i need to tag this for japan or..., especially these guys, im just saying this is not the best age to commit to anything, im not saying it's not going to go pear-shaped, it's not actually done but im done staring at this portion, it's the bumpy 2nd installment, the daniel/kumiko is backstory - they're frexes (friends who are exes)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-21
Updated: 2019-01-27
Packaged: 2019-10-13 20:46:08
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 11,210
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17495063
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/horusporus/pseuds/horusporus
Summary: Gichin Funakoshi's 20 precepts of Shotokan Karate: #1 - The outcome of a battle depends on how one handles weakness and strengthJohnny Goes To Japan, to paraphrase a band who told us all to relax.





	1. Mirai-e (To the Future)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> OK here we go. Here he comes.

The change in altitude snapped Johnny awake. Pretty soon the hiss of the PA system kicked in, and the captain's voice crackled through. Another 40 minutes to go to landing at the New Tokyo International Airport. Johnny yawned and tried to stretch in his economy seat. Outside the window it was still mostly clouds through which he could see the Pacific Ocean peeking through.

This would be the farthest he'd ever travelled. Wasn't it funny that between them Daniel was the world traveller? The most he'd ever been was cross country to New York for a karate exhibition, back with the Cobra Kai. Maybe if his senior year didn't get derailed he would've joined the trip down to Mexico.

The stewardess passed by and gently reminded him to restore his seat to its upright condition. Maybe first or business class would've been a more pleasant experience, but economy was what he could justify to Sid when he finally resorted to asking for money to make up for the shortfall. Being Mr Miyagi's guy-about-shop didn't exactly bring in the big bucks. The surprise was Sid barely making a fuss other than a few well-timed comments about going on vacation on his dime. Something about him applying himself in retail pleased Sid's entrepreneurial side, even if he wasn't quiet about how stupid (ie unprofitable) he thought selling bonsai trees was.

He worried about leaving Mr Miyagi alone, but he insisted he was fine, mainly because not-so-coincidentally Ms Yukie was coming over for a longer visit this time. A sweetheart exchange, Mr Miyagi said, pleased his remark flustered Johnny thoroughly. He liked the old man fine but he'd rather not think about him dating. But that left him thinking about Daniel which left him flushed for different reasons.

Not for the first time, he shifted uncomfortably in his seat. It seemed like such a good idea, back when he was in LA, missing Daniel thoroughly. Now, the closer he got, the more he second-guessed himself. Whatever, he only got a one-way ticket anyway, he’d figure it out once there. Johnny huffed softly at himself. Big talk from someone who never learned to let go of anyone. Got Daniel well and truly mixed up with his old dojo with that habit, didn’t he?

God, what was he doing? He didn’t speak Japanese, he knew nothing about the country. All he knew, he knew through Mr Miyagi and Daniel. But it shouldn’t be a problem, right? People spoke English there, right?

He tried to regulate his breathing, just like how Mr Miyagi taught them. It took a while, but it wasn’t like he had anywhere to be. He decided he’d try his luck and find a payphone and hope that Daniel’s home.

He had a moment when he thought he was going to be deported home at immigration, because everything about arriving in Japan had thus far confused him. He only barely managed to keep his head when they asked if he wanted to declare anything -- Mr Miyagi and Ms Yukie were extremely clear about this, even if there was nothing to be worried about (that’s what they kept saying anyway). It didn’t take much effort to be the clueless American, but he made sure he looked like when he was trying to ask for an extension for his homework, and not like, when he got caught smoking pot.

But it wasn’t helping his low-key panic that he made a mistake. He could barely orient himself in an international airport, and he thought he could find his way in a strange city his first time out of the country?

“Hey! Lawrence!”

Johnny couldn’t believe it. There, at the barrier just outside the door into the arrival hall, was Daniel LaRusso, grinning at him like a vision.

He blinked again, and nearly got pitched forward by a random exiting passenger. Daniel made to reach across to steady him but he was too far. Johnny barely kept his footing, and probably his cool, not that it mattered because he too, was grinning like a fool.

Daniel looked good. He was wearing the same jacket he wore at home, but maybe that shirt was new? He wanted to take in more of Daniel but he was pulled in to a crushing hug. Johnny leaned into it. Oh, he could feel something settled in place. They were okay.

“You’re an idiot,” was the next thing Daniel said. “Mr Miyagi had to send me a telegram, did you know that?”

Johnny shrugged in mild embarrassment. “I thought you’d be at work or something.”

“Even interns get off days Johnny,” said Daniel. He still held on to Johnny, even as they kept walking. Johnny was glad to let Daniel lead, and tried to adjust his backpack and his wheeled luggage bag without letting go of Daniel. It was a bit of walk to the Narita train station it turned out, but he couldn’t deny he didn’t mind the distance.

Daniel was chattering non-stop, though he noticeably kept his voice down once the train started moving. He was brimming with news, observations, questions. It was like getting one of Daniel's letters but four times as fast and dense, which even with airmail only came by around once a month. Johnny did his best to keep up but the lull of the train and the jetlag caught up with him first.

Daniel had to wake him up a couple of times to change trains and Johnny just followed him sleepily. He definitely dozed for parts of it, but Daniel just held him close and made sure he didn't do anything like fall facedown onto the tracks.

Walking from the train station woke him up a little, but everything was overwhelming. They're nowhere near the big city centres according to Daniel, but he felt closed in anyway with these low-storied buildings and single-storey houses that didn't feel real to him in the evening light.

“Ta-da, welcome to my mansion!” Daniel said with a flourish, indicating the modest-looking six-story walk-up in front of them. Daniel had explained the joke in a letter, about how the word basically means a nicer, fancier condo in Japan. “How does it rate against yours huh?” Daniel continued.

“Oh yeah, hands down, no question,” he said drily, repositioning his backpack again as Daniel led them inside and upstairs. Mr Miyagi and Mrs LaRusso made Daniel take so many nondescript photos of his apartment unit, so Johnny was hit by flashes of deja vu as soon as he stepped into the studio apartment. It was the smallest apartment he had ever seen in his life, but he wasn’t sure if that was because this was Tokyo or he was from Los Angeles. There was the corner with the simple low table for dining and some work. There was the kitchen, and the bonsai embroidery patch that Daniel had stuck on the fridge. That postcard with a beach sunset view he sent early on was also there. Somewhere to the right is the bathroom, that surprisingly came with a bath. And dominating the space in the centre, was a surprisingly cozy-looking double bed.

His mouth ran away with him. “Are we sharing a bed?” Daniel blinked. Johnny mentally kicked himself. Sure, their reunion went suprisingly smooth but hugging your best friend was miles away from sharing a bed with your not-broken-up-yet boyfriend.

For the first time that evening, Daniel looked shy. “Um, only if you want to? I got an air mattress from a guy leaving the country that I can use, it’s no problem.”

Johnny took hold of Daniel’s hand before he went any further. “Yes. Yes, of course.”

“Right. Great. Should- should we just take out the bed now? I mean, it’s still early--”

“Daniel,” Johnny grinned. “If there’s something to eat, I’d love to have some dinner. And a shower. And I still need to unpack this bag,” he gently shook the luggage he was still holding on too. “Your mom and your old man are ridiculous. I could’ve nearly gotten deported.”

Daniel coloured, but he couldn’t hide his pleased smile. “Aww man, they shouldn’t have.”

“Okay then, I’ll just give all this stuff away, starting with the pop tarts.”

“No, don’t you dare! Do you know how crazy expensive they are here? It’s almost 10 dollars!” Daniel said, taking the luggage and lying it flat on the floor. Johnny rolled his eyes, and knelt down to unlock it. He fished out a pair of briefs from the pile that were deliberately placed on top, to put off any customs, and made to head for the bathroom. Daniel was barely paying attention as he delightedly went through the spoils but he did point to the fresh towel waiting, and a note about a washlet. Which turned out to be some kind of fancy bidet toilet.

Showering was interesting, as he got used to the idea that everything in that small space was going to get wet. The stickers of English translations helped. If he let it, he could feel himself hardening at the realisation this was where Daniel showered too, as he lathered himself up with the same gel Daniel was probably using. He indulged himself, surrounded by the artifacts of Daniel’s life here. By the time he got out of shower, Daniel looked like a kid at Christmas. His luggage looked like it exploded outwards. By the time he unearthed something to wear, Daniel was already mostly done with putting the goodies away. He even had something in the microwave.

But he turned to Johnny to make sure. “We can go downstairs, if you like? There’s still food around here at this hour, even.”

Johnny just leaned against the kitchen counter, trying not to accidentally push the TV off its precarious position. “Japan can impress me tomorrow,” he said with a yawn. “You can sit down too,” he said, tugging at the back of Daniel’s shirt as he passed him with more American candy to put away.

“Just a minute,” Daniel muttered before the microwave dinged. He rattled around one of his drawers, and soon enough produced a fork. And a spoon. He saw Johnny’s raised eyebrows, and presented him with the microwaved meal as answer.

“It’s rice, with teriyaki chicken,” Daniel explained as he placed the tupperware on the dining table. Johnny was used enough to that dish by this point, but maybe not the spoon.

“You’ve really gone native,” he teased, settling himself on the floor seat cushion. It felt just like back in Mr Miyagi’s house, which was helping with his culture shock.

“It’s practical, you heathen,” Daniel shot back.

Turned out Daniel was an even better cook now that he had to really fend for himself. Even the chef himself agreed because he kept stealing from Johnny.

“Go away and eat that jerky we got you,” Johnny said, against Daniel’s exaggerated pout. But of course he didn’t mind. He was feeling so full of contentment, sitting here in this bachelor pad, in a strange country, eating leftovers prepared by the boy he just travelled across the ocean for sitting in front of him.

The conversation flowed easily now that he was alert, fed, and not carrying culinary contraband. Daniel wanted to know everything. So did Johnny, but he wasn’t sure what exactly to ask. Just by looking at him, Daniel was clearly in his element. Like his letters, he was effervescent about Japan. Everything was new, or exciting, or interesting, or all three. Johnny could only appreciate the effect they’ve had on Daniel since most of the details had no meaning to him. Meanwhile everything and everyone in the valley were much like how Daniel last left them. Johnny’s obviously still not in college. Mr Miyagi was still tending that bonsai shop. Oh, a girl named Jessie came by for a while, said she was sorry to have missed Daniel. Ali came home during a semester break and she did a double take since Johnny’s driving Daniel’s car during shop hours. Yeah, not much to say. Daniel kept trying, one angle after another, almost like he felt sorry that Johnny had nothing worthwhile to talk about. And Johnny couldn’t help being brief, because that wasn’t wrong.

Still, they talked through his dinner, cleaning the table, washing the dishes, and eventually standing awkwardly by the bed. Daniel just then remembered to brush his teeth, and after that Johnny too. So that when he stepped back into the main studio area, Daniel was already in bed, looking hopeful but nervous. It was dark save for the nightlight and the bit of window Daniel left uncovered.

Johnny sat down. He had to ask. “Is this okay?”

Daniel nodded. “It’s just sleeping right?”

Johnny agreed but he also noticed how wet Daniel’s lips were. He must have been worrying at them.

Johnny moved to the other side and put his bare legs quickly under the blankets. Daniel shifted, and turned off the lights.

They lay in silence, until Johnny finally crept a hand out to find Daniel’s. “I missed you,” he said, into the dark.

Daniel crept closer, turning his head towards Johnny, squeezing his hand harder in response. “Me too. So much.”

“So you didn’t meet anyone new?” Johnny joked, or at least tried to.

“Everyone I meet is new,” Daniel said, but his nascent smile dropped when he noticed Johnny kept quiet. “Sorry.”

Johnny kept his eyes on the ceiling. “I’m just being paranoid, I know.” He did know. Sure, he met Daniel because he couldn’t leave Ali well alone, but it wasn’t exactly something to brag about, punching your future boyfriend because he was making moves at your last girlfriend. He turned his head, trying to lighten the mood. “Come and kiss me then.”

Daniel went to him gladly. Johnny took the heat of the kiss as a sign it hasn’t been a crazy, foolish trip. Daniel was still his. It wasn’t too long before those fresh minty kisses became heavier, wetter. Johnny gasped into the dark as Daniel worked on a hickey just at the meat of his shoulders. They were frantically rubbing against each other, through their clothes, like excitable virgins. Close enough for Johnny - he wasn’t sure about Daniel, but all he had in the last few months were his hands and his overactive imagination, made worse by all the gay skin mags he managed to buy, in a fit of insanity that saw him driving straight to West Hollywood, desperate and still a little scared about what would anyone think. He never quite got around to asking how experienced was Daniel, but those magazines made him want to jump into a bath filled with ice.

But all that pornography couldn’t beat having a fully clothed Daniel on top of him, his hard cock pushing and pressing against his own cock, that was jerking at every sensation. Daniel was trying to keep his moans quiet, like any good apartment dweller, but Johnny was not and he groaned loud enough for both of them. It got Daniel desperately kissing him to keep it down, which was even better because he could eat up Daniel's sighs the way he wanted to consume everything else. Soon enough his legs started moving up to keep Daniel close against him, and his hips pushed up at the gasping, sighing boy breathing wetly against him. Daniel clumsily pushed down the waistbands of their shorts, and they strained against the stretched elastic. The weight of missing him was enough for Johnny, and as he came he clutched at Danny, who was also caught in chasing his own climax, while Johnny chased his mouth, one hand pressed high at the back of his pliant neck.

They stayed stuck together for a few moments, breathing hard before Daniel started moving his legs to remove his sleeping pants. Johnny followed suit. Pretty soon, they’re wiped down and wiped out and nakedly snuggling, lazily mouthing whichever bit of skin they can reach.

For the first time in months, Johnny fell asleep with Daniel in his arms.

 

Waking up naked, entangled and warm, against the bright morning sun piercing through the gap in the curtains, had to be one of Johnny’s favourite ways to wake up. But this morning, it was that and more, because Daniel was busy using his mouth to explore Johnny’s extremely willing body. Johnny was still trying to shake sleep from his eyes when Daniel started playing with his rising cock.

A man could live like this, he thought fuzzily as Daniel started licking and sucking. His brain was flooded with endorphins and other hormones, seemingly at cross purposes. Now that his perennial fantasy of Daniel's mouth full of his cock was becoming true, he couldn’t keep his eyes off of him, even as the wet heat and suction was driving him nuts. He clutched at the sheets, letting Daniel did with him as he wished, and sighed when a hand crept up and played with a tight nipple. It didn’t take long after that, but even through the comedown he could feel himself twitching at Daniel breathing noisily close as he got himself off.

“Mmm,” he stretched into the bed. “Good morning.”

“Good morning,” returned Daniel, with that well-earned Jersey swagger. He didn't move far up, just laid his head on Johnny's bare stomach. Johnny just played with that thick lovely hair, waiting for his heart rate to settle. That close, it probably wouldn't take long for Johnny to want to go again, which felt positively decadent and probably vaguely a bad idea. Maybe orgasms were the secret remedy to jetlag and nobody thought to tell them.

His stomach decided for them, and with Daniel practically on top of it, he couldn’t have not heard the growl. “I guess that’s the cue,” he said, smiling up at Johnny, his chin sharp on Johnny’s offending body part.

Breakfast was toast with what Daniel called milk bread, with butter and some freshly bought store-brand strawberry jam. But Johnny got chased off from seconds because this was only a snack apparently. Daniel took another day off, since it was a Friday anyway, so he could play tour guide for the weekend.

And Daniel was an extremely enthusiastic one. Johnny managed to keep up with most of it, but he mostly spent the time enjoying Japan through Daniel's eyes. He had a regular convenience store, staffed by people who were familiar enough to have conversations with, which he could only follow the English parts. He followed Daniel's lead and learned to do a simple bow as they passed by anyone who greeted them. Daniel was just plain neighbourly, and with him along, he was also newsworthy. In the city proper it was different, too many people all speeding their way. Daniel's east coast ways fitted in perfectly while Johnny had to learn to move in a crowd smoothly on the fly. But he was easily one of the tallest person with his hay blond hair, so he got given a wide berth anyway.

At one point they were in Shibuya and a group of girls with a 35mm camera came up to them for a picture. Well, just Johnny. Bemused, Johnny allowed it, but pretty soon they needed to make their escape as more cameras came out.

“What was that?” Johnny demanded to Daniel who was trying to walk and giggle at the same time, without much success at both.

“You're white and blond. It happens.”

“You get bothered too?”

“I'm not white and blond,” Daniel said with a small smile. “I'm just foreign.”

Johnny didn't like it when Daniel made comments like that. He couldn't help how he looked. So what if he was born white? It's not his fault. But hanging out with Daniel and Mr Miyagi at least taught him to keep his mouth shut. It bugged him that for all that he was beginning to understand, as one person what the fuck he was supposed to do? Not too long ago he would've punched something or someone just to get some satisfaction, and that urge was still there, make no mistake, but these days it was banked deep. Daniel and Mr Miyagi cultivated in him a longer fuse, but he still wished he could do something.

He realised he was working himself up, and tried for a couple of slow breaths. Daniel wasn't wrong, and it wasn't like he was an asshole to turn down giggly girls with cameras. Both were true. He just had to work on squaring these two notions in his head, but how and what next, he wouldn't know.

“I'm still a dumbass,” he muttered belatedly. Daniel knocked their shoulders together in understanding.

But other than that moment, which unfortunately left Johnny acutely conscious of attention being paid his way for the rest of the day, it was fine. Daniel kept saying his Japanese was passable, but Johnny was plenty impressed. Sure, Mr Miyagi wasn’t shy about living his life as a Japanese man, but he never really went out of his way to be more than a guy who could teach some karate. That was all Daniel, to throw himself into something like cultural immersion just because he loved the old man so much. He found himself giving Daniel’s lower back an unprompted squeeze.

“Hmm?” Daniel turned his head in query. He was actually checking his local guidebook because there was a park nearby they could take a break in.

“Nothing. You’re cute.” Johnny simply said. He wished he could kiss the resultant blush, but he remembered this part of Daniel’s general rules of being in Japan at least. He just squeezed Daniel’s hand this time, and let his tour guide get back to his job.

On Saturday, he followed Daniel to a dojo that was one line change and seven stops away. It was its own school but owed its beginnings to Okinawan karate all the same. Daniel had been visiting this dojo for almost two months by now, and again, it showed how well he got on with everyone. In session, it did resemble more of what Daniel and Mr Miyagi were doing than what he was taught. Regardless, he declined to join. If he looked at Daniel too long as he went through his forms, it was purely academic interest. But he did look good. There were forms that looked new to him, and Daniel looked so serious and attentive partly as it seemed to Johnny due to this sensei typically not conducting his classes in English.So as Daniel was listening, so did Johnny from the sidelines. Back in California, Johnny would try to ask Mr Miyagi how did he think Daniel was doing with his karate, but as usual Mr Miyagi would say very little. Johnny would imagine something like this though, something that would help Daniel since neither he nor Mr Miyagi would be close. Johnny tried to feel glad that Daniel found it.

On Sunday, he finally met the legendary Kumiko. He’d seen photos of them in Tokyo that Daniel had sent, but Daniel-level photography did nothing to capture the luminous darkness of her eyes, and the red in her hair, and how her tanned skin glowed. The secret he would never tell Daniel was that sometimes he’d imagine them kissing, the way it must had been when they were in Okinawa. He was imagining this as soon as they met, as he took in all the new details, and found himself insufferably rude because his mind was miles away during the introduction. But Kumiko had no airs, and was gracious to a fault, and as they sat down for a barbecue dinner at an izakaya, she was also incredibly fun. And she was a dancer. She was perfect.

Purely by accident, while Daniel and he were sitting across each other, Daniel and Kumiko sat on the same side. They looked like a match: dark eyes and hair, tanned and smiling, comfortably ordering in Japanese, fitting in. Johnny on the other hand was aware of sticking out despite the clear evidence of everyone very politely not staring.

He resolved to not let it get to him, and it wasn't like Kumiko and Daniel were shutting him out, but they were friends, with their own inside references and jokes, tried as they did to explain it all to him.

At some point, Monday was brought up. Daniel's intern days would start again.

“I'll be fine,” Johnny tried for reassuring.

“We can have lunch together?” Kumiko asked, eyes bright.

“Oh, you don't have to go out of your way--”

“It's no trouble, I need to drop a couple of things for Yukie-san and Miyagi-san for Daniel's next letter,” she explained earnestly.

There was no getting out of it. “Sure,” he said weakly.

“Great! I will come at noon,” Kumiko smiled in response. Johnny just nodded and helped himself to grilled pork. As the night went on, he could feel his mind wandering, tired by all the new information he had had to take in. Eventually Daniel noticed, and even though he clearly could keep going, he called it a night, which Johnny didn't really fight.

“Kumiko was nice,” he said, as they stood at the platform waiting for their train.

“Yeah! I knew you'd like her. She's great,” Daniel beamed.

“Can't wait for tomorrow,” was all Johnny said for the rest of the ride home.

 

The next day, Johnny discovered Daniel wore glasses.

“When did this happen?” He asked, puzzled because he didn't notice contact lenses or Daniel having vision problems so far. Daniel reddened and mumbled something.

“What?”

“I said, it's nothing. It's just-- it makes me look older that's all,” he said, not meeting Johnny's eyes.

“Let me take a look,” he demanded, standing in front of Daniel. Daniel managed to find one of those dorky coke bottle frames, and he did look like a complete nerd, with his work shirt and tie and his suit jacket still in his arm. Johnny groaned, and Daniel winced.

“I don't know if it's working babe, you still look cute,” he said finally. Daniel rolled his eyes in relief but his blush was still high on his cheeks. Johnny was downplaying it, the asshole looked hot. It just wasn't fair. He tugged Daniel closer, his hands creeping downwards to that firm ass hidden by the work trousers. He remembered these trousers -- Daniel’s mom came back with a bunch of clothes the rest of the LaRusso clan insisted that Daniel would at least try. The unmagnified fake glasses somehow still made Daniel’s eyes even bigger, while his red-pink mouth was unconsciously open and inviting. The firm flesh in his hands bounced a little as Daniel squirmed. “I can’t believe I have to do all this walking after what you did to me last night,” he muttered.

“Excuse me? What I did? I wasn’t the one playing cowboy,” Johnny teased.

“Oh my god shut up.” Now Daniel just looked frankly illegal, with those pink cheeks.

“I’m sorry, Daniel,” Johnny apologised in an exaggerated voice. “I’m sorry you have to look all nerdy and boring today when you’re still recovering from your sexual gymnastics--”

Daniel poked him on the shoulder. “Are you making fun of my pain?”

“Oh not at all,” Johnny said, now sincere. He meant it, especially with his hands still full fondling that ass that took his cock so well last night. Daniel gave him a dirty look, looking like he knew what Johnny was thinking, which honestly wasn’t hard. Johnny really had a fairly limited set of things he’d be thinking about Daniel at any given time. _Love that mouth, love that ass, love the way his tummy shakes when he’s tickled, love him--_

“Johnny, focus,” Daniel said, pulling his face forward to face him. In retaliation, Johnny stole a kiss. He didn’t even slip tongue, he was practically a saint. “City map, and the notebook with all the stuff I’ve been telling you,” he pointed to the books on the kitchen counter. “I tagged the pages you might need in the map, and I took some photos, they’re in the album. They're photos of the station nearby and all the stuff you need to know to find,” Daniel listed. “Our neighbourhood’s map is in page with the pink flag okay?”

“Daniel, I’ll be fine.” Daniel still looked conflicted. Earlier he wanted Johnny to follow him to the station at least so he’d be more sure but then he worried the early morning rush was just going to confuse Johnny and Daniel might miss his train. This even though he already had those photos developed. Johnny didn’t let Daniel twist himself up too much. Daniel was just being a worrywart. Johnny was an adult, all right?

It didn't take long after Daniel left, when he decided to take a walk around the neighborhood, to disagree with himself. He was a dumbass. A dumbass who didn't even bring along that pocket map. He could feel his panic making every house look the same, and the alleyways small and constricting but he couldn't help it. He walked slower to get his bearings in the quiet neighborhood now that most of the morning foot traffic had settled, but it was no good. Why did he even come? It wasn't like Daniel needed him anyway.

“Johnny-san!”

Johnny looked up. It was Kumiko, waving at him in front of Daniel's regular convenience store. Well, he definitely managed to take a walk around the neighborhood all right, as his surroundings settled in his sight and he realised he was practically halfway to the metro station.

“Kumiko,” he sighed in relief. At her inquiring look, he explained his predicament with embarrassment, which she graciously didn't laugh at at all.

“I was too early for our appointment, so I thought better I buy a drink first before coming over,” she said in exchange, “so it was a good thing I was early after all, ne?”

He nearly forgot about that, and then noticed the packages under her arm. “Let me take that,” he offered. It was the least he could do, Kumiko had no idea how much she was a lifesaver.

“Maybe later,” she said in consideration as she looked into the store they haven't entered yet. “First, let's introduce you to oden.”

 

Oden it turned out, was those fish balls and other things he saw cooking gently in the hotpot by the cashier, which was weird enough, but so was having hot soupy food at a 7-Eleven in the first place. It reminded him a little bit of the sukiyaki Mr Miyagi would do once a month, especially if he caught a nice piece of fish. It struck him belatedly, that there was no way he would look cool in front of a girl trying to spear fishballs in hot soup with chopsticks he barely knew how to use, but it turned out there were these flat things Kumiko called fish cakes and also, forks.

His impression from last night didn’t change. As they finished their oden at the tiny seating area (were all 7-Elevens this overwhelming?), Kumiko remained a cheerful and cool girl to know. If it felt like their mutual interest in each other was due to Daniel, then so be it. It wasn’t a bad shared interest after all. She wanted to know how he was like in LA; he was curious about the boy she knew in Japan. It helped that they were both fond of him, it was a pleasant walk back to the apartment, trading stories. In between her bubbly stories of her dance troupe, and her landlady, and how Tokyo is so different from her village in Okinawa, Johnny couldn’t help feeling envious. Kumiko looked like she’d got it made, and what did he have? Old brags from his high school days, and small retail stories from Mr Miyagi’s shop. She was even working on a diploma at the dance school, which only reminded Johnny of the promise to his mom that he kept putting off.

It was only inevitable that he accidentally gave themselves away, because so much of his life now had Daniel in it, but he thought he was being careful. He only realised his slip-up once they were in Daniel’s apartment, when Kumiko slowly said to him, “I didn’t realise… you both are-- not friends? I mean, more than friends?”

Shit. Johnny tried to laugh it off but Kumiko cut him off, continuing, “I thought you were just good friends, that you’ve… made up, but-- oh,” Kumiko paused, pinkening. Her eyes widened when she realised Johnny’s rising panic. “No, no, please! I’m sorry for making you feel… scared? I’m just confused…” she trailed off.

“No, no, it’s probably me,” Johnny said, trying to salvage the situation. But Kumiko wasn’t stupid, and since they’re already in the apartment anyway she saw the one bed they didn’t make any effort to hide it was shared by two. She just shifted her gaze to look at him, pointedly, but in the politest way possible. Fuck.

Kumiko broke the tension with a small laugh. “Johnny, it’s okay, really.” She turned to fiddle with the packages that were now on the kitchen counter, a small smile still on her face. “Daniel never said exactly who, but um, I sort of had the same conversation with him before.” She gave him a funny look. “He was being very cute about his boyfriend.”

“He said I was his boyfriend?” Johnny asked stupidly.

“Well, not at first. Obviously.” Kumiko laughed another small laugh in recollection. “Ne--,” Kumiko interrupted herself. “Sorry.” Johnny must have had looked like he was still close to hyperventilating, because she took him by the hand and made him sit down by the low table by the window. Outside of their families, Kumiko was literally the first person Johnny had had to have this conversation. Would it ever get easier? Kumiko was probably the best case scenario and Johnny still felt he needed to go hide in the bathroom with a full case of beer and never come out.

“It was so funny, how it all came out, in the end,” Kumiko said, contemplatively. “Well, funny now, I suppose.”

“Uh, what happened?” asked Johnny, just to keep the conversation going.

“Well, now I can say that Daniel was worried, a little? Since, we, you know,” Kumiko blushed. “Before he left for home and I came here.” At Johnny’s nod, she continued. “At first when we met up here again, it was great. It was nice to have a familiar face, you know? But I think, ahh… ne,” Kumiko tilted her head in this particular way Johnny was beginning to realise was a typical Japanese affect, “we realised we needed to have a talk about now… well, Daniel did. I wasn’t looking, but I guess I was hoping,’’ she admitted.

“Oh,” Johnny said dumbly.

“He is your boyfriend,” Kumiko said, barely pausing at ‘boyfriend’. “You know how cute he is,” she teased.

“Yeah…” Johnny was seriously one step behind in this conversation so far. “Sorry?”

At this Kumiko really did laugh loudly, catching her own self by surprise. “He said the same thing, the same way!” She giggled. “It’s okay, there’s a boy in the dance company, we’ve been seeing each other. But yeah, that time, it was a bit hard, um, I needed a bit of time, but at the same time, it felt unfair? To him, but to me too, differently. Ah,” she shook her head. “Hard to explain how it felt then. But we’re good now,” she said firmly. “And Daniel really… he missed you, and Mr Miyagi, and his mom, a lot. But he never shared details about you though.”

Johnny supposed he should be glad that Daniel was discreet. That Daniel still wanted to talk about him at all, he should consider himself lucky. “Well, here I am,” he said instead, to Kumiko.

“Yes! No wonder Daniel looked so happy.”

“I thought that was Japan.”

Kumiko looked a bit more sombre. “Oh, I’m sure that’s true too. But we can miss home too, Johnny.”

Right. “Right. Sorry. It’s just, he always sounded upbeat in his letters and stuff you know,”

“Why make you worry?” Kumiko shrugged philosophically. “I’m sure he wasn’t lying. But, you know--”

Johnny sort of did. But he still felt that Daniel could’ve had said something. He wasn’t a mind reader.

The tension that Johnny didn’t realise he held broke with the revelation, and he could honestly and sincerely say he enjoyed his afternoon with Kumiko. She took him to Ginza, even though she said it would be strictly for window-shopping, cheerfully admitting that much of it was out of her budget. Johnny was still trying to get a grip on the conversion rate, but he had enough class to not blurt out that the prices he saw weren’t so bad. He’d seen his mom and Sid barely blink an eye whenever they went down to Rodeo Drive, and Ginza seemed just about the same. Technically he was supposed to be earning his own money, and of course he was, what with working with Mr Miyagi, but he had a supplementary card that he’d been using every so often anyway, and his mom never said a thing. He wasn’t like, wasteful. He just never thought about how much things would cost for the longest time.

Like the wide red and grey plaid cashmere scarf he got on impulse, just because Kumiko said she and Daniel passed by the shop once and she made him try it because she thought it would look good, and it did.

It really truly did, even if Daniel’s eyes were wide with shock, as soon as he caught on just what exactly was around his neck.

“Holy-- Johnny! Are you crazy?” Daniel demanded even as his fingers unconsciously petted the soft wool. “This is too much!”

Johnny shrugged. “It’s getting cold. I got myself a scarf too.” He did. He threw in another one, in navy blue, recklessly onto the counter, ignoring Kumiko’s raised brows.

Daniel spluttered. “That’s not the point! I have a couple of scarves already, I just haven’t took it out, that’s all. Ma made me pack all kinds of gear we left back in Newark.”

Johnny stiffened. “You don’t like it?”

“It’s not that I don’t like it, Johnny. It’s just-- it’s expensive! You should be savin’ money!” Daniel was upset enough that his accent got stronger.

“For what?” Johnny asked, his temper rising. “It’s just a scarf, c’mon. Don’t make it such a big deal.”

Daniel wavered. Johnny really didn’t get why Daniel’s fussing so much. He just wanted to spoil his boyfriend a little. It’s not like Daniel could afford it anyway, and he could.

He stepped closer to Daniel, who looked like he was vibrating in place, his fingers still nervously twisting themselves around the scarf’s hem. “Maybe this is an early Christmas present,” he said, catching those fingers in place.

Daniel huffed. Christmas was months away, and they both knew that. “You could’ve just bought dinner, or something.”

“Lucky you, I did actually buy dinner,” teased Johnny in relief. Mentally he made the point to maybe cool it with the expensive gifts.

Said dinner needed reheating, since Daniel came home so late. To be honest, Johnny was full from the snacking he did while waiting, but he figured that would lead to another fight, so he just made sure Daniel had most of the sesame soy pork and rice. On his part Daniel insisted on wearing the scarf throughout dinner like a dork, which turned out to be a good idea anyway since the weather was cooling down for the season, and as it turned out, they didn’t actually have central heating. So in the end, Johnny was wearing his navy scarf too and they both ended up playing footsie under the table.

The day ended without fanfare. Daniel was tired and needed an early start tomorrow. They shuffled around each other, in the quiet suburban evening, the TV on to some Japanese variety show on the only channel with clear enough reception. It felt different somehow than all the times they had spent together in LA. Johnny had nowhere else to be, and neither did Daniel. This dinky small kitchen was theirs to use, that bed theirs to sleep in. Tentatively Johnny felt like an adult, and he tried to let the sensation sink in, as Daniel sank into sleep in his arms. In the dark he felt endless and grown up, like all the movies he’d watched, the songs he’d heard, the books he’d read, were collapsing into a reality where he had arrived, a man with someone he loved by his side.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> you have no idea how much time i spent just to confirm Narita Airport's name change.
> 
> there's no rhyme nor reason to the Japanese chapter titles, as in I didn't intend any references. Uh, except for this first one, which is just [a sappy song people tend to sing at graduation](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3oO_YSBLbYg). (it's actually the working title for the first installment)


	2. Asahirubanto Ganbaru Kare (he who works hard day & night)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You know I work all day to get you money to buy you things  
> And it's worth it just to hear you say you're going to give me everything  
> So why on earth should I moan, 'cause when I get you alone  
> You know I feel OK  
> \- The Beatles
> 
> ^I couldn't figure out how to describe this chapter, so these lyrics will have to do

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> if it's worth noting, i've changed the ratings upwards.

But the charm wore off quickly, because Daniel took his internship seriously, and Johnny was stuck unmoored in a foreign country he barely understood. Daniel tried, but he wasn’t kidding about earning the opportunity he’d been given. He had only just been properly started on the corporate side of the internship at the tail end of summer, with the months before spent in long stretches in Okinawa.  It was apparent that he felt he couldn’t disappoint Sato, and Mr Miyagi most of all. Johnny truly tried to understand, but it’s a challenge in the long stretches of days without anyone. Even as he noticed the little tells of exhaustion hanging around Daniel, he couldn’t help but feel that at least Daniel was out there somewhere, doing something, even if he’d be home so late just because that was what the work culture here expected. After a certain point, even jerking off felt like a chore. At least on weekends, he’d have Daniel to himself.

He’d tried playing tourist on his own, and he was sort of getting the hang of at least using the metro but honestly most of it was him depending on how out of place he looked to at least get a sympathetic local who rightfully assumed he couldn’t even speak the language. On the other hand so many people seemed to want to practice English with him, most of them being girls and their automatic cameras. That was still weird and awkward, but he was trying to be a bit chill about it. Honestly, the most comfortable outing he had was when he fell in with a crowd of Southeast Asian exchange students for a day, and he genuinely felt like he could cry that he was in a bar effortlessly speaking English for a good two hours.

They actually roped him into another meetup, somewhere in Shinjuku that weekend. He was going to be late, since he was bringing Daniel along, and that was his karate day. Daniel seemed excited enough when Johnny first brought it up, but that morning, he could see it was stressing Daniel out, the thought of meeting new people. It seemed like even literally crossing the ocean couldn’t break Daniel’s tendency of keeping to himself and his habits. Spending most of his working hours at the office or a dojo probably didn’t help either, and Johnny realized that other than Kumiko, he had not been introduced to any other acquaintance.

Johnny was chewing over this as he was left to his own self as usual at the dojo. He could be over-exaggerating it. It’s not like Daniel needed him 24/7. He thought back of the letters Daniel wrote: long, cheerful ones that would begin with _Dear Mr Miyagi_ , and would continue in neatly written semi-cursive. Johnny would never guess that would be Daniel's hand, and he would never guess that Daniel had a flair for writing, even if he was a fast-talking Jersey boy.

_Tokyo is so different from Okinawa. Go figure, but it's also so different than anything else I've ever seen in my life. It's a little like New York City, like Manhattan maybe, if it was a lot cleaner on the streets and not just shiny up top. You should come some time, I think it'd be fun. People here don't think much about Okinawa, except for summer vacation maybe. I think in the office I'm in the select group that's been to Okinawa. They think it's funny that was my first Japanese visit--_

At this point in Johnny's recitation, Mr Miyagi would snort loudly, over his current bonsai project. Johnny was just beginning to understand that if most Japanese didn't think much of Okinawa, Okinawans like Mr Miyagi didn't think much of Japan either.

Johnny would continue. Daniel was fine, everything was good, Tokyo was a city of wonders. Often, Daniel would manage to slip a few photos because both his mom and Mr Miyagi insisted. There was no value in them other than realizing this was where Daniel slept, this was where he cooked, this was where he worked. Did he clean up before snapping a picture? Was it always that clean? Johnny had spied chopsticks by the sink. Was he an expert already or was that all the cutlery he could get? Every picture was a tableau that told Johnny so many details, imagined or otherwise.

In the last letter before he came, was another letter addressed specifically to him, handed over by Mr Miyagi with a knowing look. Johnny could barely keep his cool, which was probably why he was given the chore of reading the main letter out loud while Mr Miyagi had worked. The thing was, that was the first time Daniel sent him something separately. Usually he'd get a paragraph or half a page even. _Tell Johnny he'd be too tall for my apartment. Hey Johnny, that movie we saw last summer finally opened here, but it's all in Japanese. Johnny, the nearby park is a regular hangout for the local biker boys. I think I saw a couple of them on your bike._

He remembered trying his best to honor the letter Daniel addressed to Mr Miyagi and read it out carefully even as his own letter burned in his pocket. He remembered taking off as soon as he could that day, just so he could take his own sweet time reading his own letter. He remembered choosing to park at the beach, in Daniel’s car, opening the letter in the warm glow of the afternoon sun. He remembered the letter not for the details, though the details did appropriately made him laugh, smile, roll his eyes. He remembered because at the end of it, Daniel crossed a neat line to begin a section where he gave short reviews to every song in the mixtape Johnny had sent him, a project that took him two weeks just so he could pick just the right song and then trying to get the second tape deck in his stereo working. And Daniel’s reviews were funny, but some of his opinions were so wrong Johnny was mentally writing replies before a wave of longing hit him so much, by the ocean, and he wished Daniel was next to him so he could argue with him in person.

He remembered being so lonely, but maybe Daniel was lonely too.

There was a lull at the dojo, which snapped Johnny out of his head. Everyone was being respectfully quiet, while Daniel faced an instructor with a wooden board in his hands. Johnny held his breath too, and Daniel released his with a loud cry, and punched the board clean through. A short round of excited responses later, and a few solid claps on Daniel’s back, as Daniel caught his eye, and beamed in relieved excitement.

Maybe not, Johnny thought.

But that success, and a hard-earned one that Johnny didn’t know if this dojo even realised the extent of, was enough to propel Daniel out of his gi, into his street clothes, and pressed close to Johnny in the train, without one more anxious check-in if he should be joining this meetup, since they’re Johnny’s friends after all, which was stretching it a bit.

They were late, as Johnny had warned the group, but not too much since apparently even Japan couldn’t fix Southeast Asian punctuality. To be honest, before Japan, if Johnny could vaguely identify Southeast Asia, he’d probably start at Vietnam and end there. He never would’ve thought that included Thailand and the Philippines, but really all he knew about them was whatever he picked up from the takeout menus in his house.

It was a big enough group that they had to pick a spot that would have a big enough table to accommodate them, which meant the meetup was at a food court in one of the department stores. Even in the crowd of various food stalls with tourists and locals alike, they stood out, and they waved Johnny and Daniel over the moment they noticed the boys looking for them.

It was kind of funny that he could be talking to them with barely any confusion, that they’d be so up-to-date with the shows he knew, or the movies, or the music, that he could forget himself until they hit a gap, and even then it felt more like talking to somebody out of state, until he realized he barely knew anything about their countries, unlike say, Idaho (potatoes?). But he realized that was how it had been so far in Japan, it’s just that this bunch was fluent in English. That was just crazy to think about, that any one of these people could be catapulted to the States right now, and would have a much easier time getting their bearings that he had been so far.

By the time they had to leave, there were at least three different cultural holiday potlucks that they had been invited to. One of them, Neung, clearly decided she was going to be their big sister, and harangued them with tips on living in Tokyo. Since that was how she acted with the rest anyway, Johnny and Daniel bore it with some measure of grace. Conveniently enough a couple of them stayed only a stop away from where Daniel’s apartment was, so maybe they’d bump into each other again soon. Besides, they’d exchanged addresses and phone numbers anyway. Well, he made Daniel take them down because he had neither a pen nor a notebook.

So it was in good spirits when they left, before the evening went on longer. Some part of that hangout sparked a tangent, that led to Johnny finally, properly, catching Daniel up on what had been happening back home: talking about how the shop had been --  the new inventory, the flooding, and Ms Yukie coming over for the next couple of months.

“Well, it’s good that she came since Mr Miyagi’s gonna need someone, no matter what he says, with that cast on.”

“What cast?” Daniel asked, his face pale.

“Oh. Um, it was nothing,” Johnny hastily assured him. “It was really just a sprain, but the doc thought it’s a good idea, considering his age and all.” Oh, that didn’t go well at all. Daniel still looked upset. “Really, it’s been a couple of months. He’s fine.”

Maybe he should’ve kept his mouth shut.

Daniel kept frowning. “He didn’t say anythi-- you didn’t say anything!”

“I thought he’d say something!” Johnny protested. “Look,” Johnny slowed his tone, “maybe I should've said something, but it really wasn't a big deal. He's just playing it up so Ms Yukie would spoil him,” he said, trying for humor.

“I could’ve gotten something for him here, you know. One of those salves he’d swear by so much, something!” Daniel was speeding up, walking ahead, in his agitation.

Johnny couldn’t help his scoff. “Don’t be silly Daniel, by the time you find out, it’s not like you can do anything about it. It’s fine, I told you.”

Daniel crossed his arms tightly, like he was clutching himself. Johnny wanted to bite his tongue in two, but he didn’t say anything wrong damn it, why was Daniel making him feel so bad?

They resumed their walk in silence, Daniel clearly thinking hard, Johnny already regretting his tone. Inadvertently he thought back on how his mother resumed her social life once she was better, and how she and her friends practically overwhelmed each other with news and came out of it looking pleased, however late they might have had come to it. But it wasn’t big important news, it wasn’t that big of a deal, most of it. It was just gossip. Girls loved to gossip. If Mr Miyagi had to be hospitalized or something, sure, someone would’ve told Daniel. Then that would be important. Daniel was just making a big deal for nothing.

For once, most of their trip was mostly quiet. Johnny didn't think Daniel was giving him the cold shoulder, but he didn't like how Daniel was rabbiting inside his mind, thinking up God knows what. He tried to start something a couple of times, but Daniel was distracted, fidgeting, biting his nails the way Johnny hadn't seen before since that first tournament. He could see red, then blood, and he couldn't take it anymore and grabbed Daniel's hands, fuck anyone who noticed in the train. His hands were a little cool and raw at the tips, cuticles ragged, and Johnny could do nothing but cover those blood-hot fingers with his own cool ones.

“I want to go home, Johnny,” Daniel whispered, and Johnny felt a confusing mix of excitement and terror and grief, because this wasn't the Daniel he thought lived in Japan.

He tilted his head forward so they were huddling together, two foreign boys by the sliding doors of a speeding train, and whispered, “That's just the homesickness talking. C’mon, you love it here.”

Daniel shook his head briefly in denial.

“You are, you are,” Johnny said urgently. “Do you know how proud Mr Miyagi is? And your mom?” He squeezed those fingers. “I'm so proud of you.”

“I'm missing out on so much,” Daniel said, still in a whisper.

“Daniel, you're learning so much, are you kidding me?”

In reply, Daniel only pressed closer.

In the dimming light of the day, from the station to their apartment, the silence felt all of a piece. In the quieter neighborhood streets, Daniel dared to link their arms together. Johnny gladly made room, even as he worried, unprepared for this glimpse. But wasn’t it something he’d been unconsciously wanting? He worked hard to not mean it, but wasn’t he jealous? Didn’t he think Daniel was just playing it up? He held Daniel tighter.

He was still thinking about it when they arrived home. He wished he had someone to talk to. Did Daniel have anyone to talk to as well? Kumiko?

Daniel cleared his throat. He was standing by the kitchen counter, waiting for Johnny’s attention to come back to him. “Sorry,” he said, quiet and barely making eye contact. “I guess I was just freaking out for no reason, huh?”

Johnny came closer. “Do you want to talk about it?”

Daniel shook his head. But he held out his hand, and Johnny took it. Johnny let Daniel idly play with his fingers, not minding at all the awkward height of the counter that pressed its corners sharply into his hips.

“I know you guys are proud of me,” Daniel said finally. “Like, I’d be stupid if I didn’t know that. And I do like Japan, I love Okinawa, and I can’t tell you how much this has meant to me. It’s just… I’m not my mom?” Daniel sighed. “She’s always got one eye on the horizon, you know, chasing the next thing, and I’ve always just been her kid, tagging along. And I know why she does it, and I appreciate it, and yeah, now I’m doing something she’s been dreaming of-- she used to talk about how she was so jealous about the kids in her high school who’d get to go back to the old country or wherever, and she was always bringing up the time she was nearly going to follow this old couple up to Rochester to be their au pair, but then my uncle Vinny got into a car accident, and she had to take care of his shop, and that’s how she met my dad, and yadda yadda,” Daniel paused for breath. He looked up and faced Johnny square in the eyes.

“I just want to be somewhere where I can just be me. But it feels so… I feel like an asshole for thinking that. Like, this is a pretty sweet gig right? Why am I even complaining? The year’s almost over anyway.”

Johnny had no idea what to say, so all he did was kiss Daniel, who sighed into the kiss and clutched Johnny harder by the waist. It was his moment to be honest too, but Daniel didn’t need to hear about how he missed him and envied him for months and months, thinking he was left behind in the Valley when all Daniel wanted was his family.

The kisses didn’t really lead to anywhere that night, but they barely let each other out of sight before falling asleep to the tv softly playing static.

  


“You look ridiculously hot with those fake glasses of yours,” Johnny groaned the next morning, swooping down for a kiss. Daniel sighed, but his hands were firm on Johnny's chest. “Johnny, stop. I’m going to be late.”

“What can I say, I’ve got a hot boyfriend,” he whispered, lips trailing down to his jawline. He might suck at talking about their feelings, but he knew how to do this at least, to bring a hiccup in Daniel’s breathing.

“No, no hickeys!” Daniel slapped his shoulders ineffectually. “I don’t want to relive last week, _please_.”

“Ugh, fine. Go away and be responsible.”

Daniel bit his lip. Johnny groaned again. He shouldn’t pull that kind of shit if he didn’t want to be molested right here in their tiny kitchen.

Next thing he knew, Daniel smoothly hooked his leg inwards so that Daniel could slip out of his arms on the sink. Daniel pulled the arm nearest to him, and pivoted both of them so that Johnny’s now the one leaning on the sink while Daniel was… kneeling on the floor.

“You got ten minutes,” he whispered as he slipped Johnny’s night shorts down.

“No, _you_ got ten minutes,” Johnny sighed as Daniel’s warm wet mouth closed over his head and nimble fingers circled his shaft. “Ow!” Johnny cried at the pinch on his inner thigh. “Fine. Oh yeah,” he breathed out. “Suck that cock, baby. You love it so much don’t you,” he said deliberately, knowing how hot it got Daniel when he broke out the dirty talk. “Take out your cock baby, it must be so hard now.”

Daniel groaned around his cock. Fuck, that felt good. Daniel’s mouth opened wider, taking more of him in. Johnny Lawrence was officially in love with how much a quick study Daniel LaRusso was. He had to close his eyes, the sight of Daniel’s pouty bottom lips stretched around his cock was too much to take. His hands stayed behind his back, clutching at the sink like his life depended on it. He could feel Daniel’s hands on his shaft, on his thighs, while his own poor cock stayed neglected. He did not have enough brain cells left to imagine what he’d do to Daniel, his nerve endings were all fired up by the warm wet heat of Daniel’s mouth. His own mouth was running the commentary in his head, which just made Daniel even more desperate. Fuck, even the rough sounds of Daniel taking more of his cock felt like nitro was being injected into his veins.

He could feel himself getting close, his hips was jerking more and more uncontrollably. One of his hands flew to Daniel’s head, and he had to, he had to, he had to press Daniel even deeper, and his baby just took it, opened wider and took it all.

His hand fell weakly; his chest beat strongly. Daniel was moaning against his thighs, breathing hotly. His head felt like it wanted to explode at the sight, his boy panting on his knees, his hand striping his wet hard cock, coming out of those respectable-looking slacks, looking like every fantasy he could ever have.

Johnny slid down the counter, and slid down his right hand to join Daniel’s, who cried out at the new sensation.

 “That’s it baby,” Johnny kept saying, between open sloppy kisses. “Johnny, Johnny,” Daniel cried, and cried again, a wordless sound. Johnny made sure it was his hand that caught Danny’s come, and he made sure Danny could stand. He wet a paper towel and wiped his baby down, put those zippers up, and stroked his hair back into something fit for public life. Daniel had his arms around him, snuffling at his collar.

 “Okay, time’s up!” Johnny said brightly.

 “Nooooo.” Daniel rubbed his face against his collar like a sleepy kitten.

 “You’re a respectable intern now. Go out there and do intern things.” Johnny would so love to walk him to the station but in the mood they were both in, they'd sooner be arrested for public indecency. He pushed Daniel away, but couldn’t help his hands from lingering on that still trembling stomach. He smoothed down Daniel’s shirt, his pants, but really he just couldn’t tear his hands away. His eyes looked brighter but those bags underneath were almost purple. He pulled Daniel for an impulsive kiss at the door, fuck the neighbors if they were around, those fake glasses crushed between them. Daniel pulled back, chest heaving, red in his lips and cheeks, and dashed forward again for another peck before dashing off down the stairs. Johnny just leaned against the door, pressing his lips together, savoring the taste.

 After the coldest shower he could get, he decided he would go out, stop by anywhere that might have a cute postcard and drop his mom a line. That comfortably took up his morning, and for all that effort, he was stumped at what to say in that small square of card. In the end, he settled for something pleasantly bland about the city and how she would love it, sparking a moment of sympathy for Daniel’s updating attempts.

He went to Kumiko’s dance company to see if she was free for lunch but she was busy today, rehearsing for a show with a week to go for opening night. She appreciated the sandwich he got for her from the convenience store nearby though and she was happy to hear about the meetup and Daniel’s new friends, so it wasn’t a total loss. Afterwards, he got dragged into an empty studio by an apologetic photographer who needed an emergency model and since he was blond and blue-eyed and had time to kill, that was how Johnny found himself dressed in fancy ski-gear trying not to drop a girl who seemed to be an aspiring pop starlet.

It was a weird afternoon. He got the photographer’s card though and he left him Daniel’s number, so maybe that was something to do if he was going to be here for a while. And the photographer was fun, and by the time they were done, so did Kumiko’s rehearsal. So that was how he found himself in a Harajuku bar, having dinner consisted entirely of bar snacks and beer on tap.

He got home just before Daniel, which meant it was very late. The walk did sober him a little, and the cold of the night and the apartment did the rest. When he stepped out of the bathroom, Daniel just closed the door.

“Hey,” he called out, a little hazily. “You’re back.”

“Yeah,” Daniel said. “You too?”

Johnny hummed in reply, and told him about dropping by Kumiko’s dance company and all that happened next. Daniel mostly replied without much words, his back turned, while he moved around the kitchen for something, which Johnny eventually realized was a cup of instant noodles.

 “Oh, you haven’t had dinner yet.” Shit, Johnny was usually the one to take care of that, since he’d be the one with the time to anyway.

 “Nah,” Daniel replied easily. “I had something to eat on the way back. This is just snack.”

 Johnny frowned at the break in habit, but he wasn’t the person to cast stones considering today, so he just shrugged and joined Daniel at the table. Daniel didn’t have much to say today apparently, and would much rather ask Johnny on how his day went. Somewhere in there, his mood changed, and he crept closer to Johnny as he kept the questions going, until his questions became downright dirty, dirty and dirtier, to match Johnny’s heavy breathing.

 “Did you have to change your clothes a lot?” Daniel asked, his hands creeping under Johnny’s shirt, both of them sprawled on the mat by the table.

 “Sure,” Johnny answered, moving up to kiss Daniel by the mouth.

 “Maybe they had cameras all around, everywhere. Do you think they have one in the changing room?”

 “Oh no,” Johnny whispered in mock dismay. “Maybe they saw me naked,” he said, licking the shiver that run under Daniel’s skin. “Do you think so Daniel? Maybe they saw the hickeys you left me.”

 “Maybe next time I can come along, and I’ll keep you company.” Daniel had his shirt rucked up and his jeans zipped down, and he was stroking Johnny’s cock through his cotton briefs. “You know, just to check if there are spy cameras around.”

 Johnny groaned at the hungry look in Daniel’s eyes. “Baby, you better fuck me right now, I can’t stand it.”

As if on cue, they scrambled up the floor and into the bed, throwing clothes everywhere, frantic and horned up. Daniel wouldn’t stop kissing him, and licking him, and biting him, everywhere, like he really did want people to know Johnny was his. He kept whispering, _there, there_ , like he was leaving behind flags to fend off claims, like Johnny was at all interested in being claimed by anyone else other than Daniel LaRusso.

 He pulled Daniel to him to keep him quiet, as Daniel’s slick fingers opened him up, one then two, then two for the longest fucking time. His legs kicked out despite themselves when Daniel found that tiny gland that they found drove him insanely buck wild, and kept jerking because Daniel kept stroking and stroking, like he wanted him to come just on his fingers alone. He couldn’t let go of his own hands gripping Daniel’s shoulders tight, but he pleaded in nonsense words, one leg weakly gripping Daniel’s thighs, begging for release.

“I got you,” Daniel muttered, and he kept kissing him, because now it was his cock that was steadily breaching him. Johnny could never get over the pressure but he would kill Daniel if he stopped, and he didn’t. Just steady pumping, eyes wide open, looking down at Johnny like he never wanted to see anything else.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1\. Those Southeast Asians would like to blame that one Malaysian person who keeps saying they're on the way, but NEVER not, for their lack of punctuality. (IT ME)
> 
> 2\. Chapter title is modified from this song by Utada Hikaru, translated as '[A Two-Hour Vacation'](https://vimeo.com/183041198). ([Lyrics with translation](http://www.animelyrics.com/jpop/utada/nijikandakeno.htm))


End file.
